President Mahinda Rajapaksa has told UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon that road blocks set up as part of the measures to counter LTTE threat couldn’t be removed immediately. The President explained at a meeting with Moon that measures in place against LTTE attacks would have to be lowered gradually though major combat operations had come to an end.

Authoritative sources told The Island that Moon had called for the removal of all barriers in the city and its suburbs as well as in the northern region to facilitate the movement of civilians when he met the Sri Lankan leader at President’s House in Kandy.

Sources said that the President had also emphasised the urgent need to apprehend and deport to Sri Lanka LTTE frontliner ‘KP’ believed to be operating in a South East Asian country and other LTTE leaders operating overseas.